Preparation of a CubeSat LEO radio wave propagation campaign at Q and W bands

Summary Due to the congestion of the spectrum and the need for wider bandwidths, ultrahigh throughput satellites (UHTSs) are moving towards the use of higher frequency bands (Q/V and W bands). These frequencies are however severely impaired by atmospheric phenomena causing attenuation, scintillation and depolarization and compromising the quality of service (QoS). In order to study the Earth-space link, several experimental campaigns have been performed up to the Q band with geostationary (GEO) satellites. This paper introduces a new propagation experiment that will extend the characterization of the Earth-space channel up to the W band and low Earth orbits (LEOs).